I think you are misunderstanding me.
What I meant was that I would rather see a cruise line increase their price of the cruise then to see the food and service decline. If a few more dollars are tacked on to a cruise to keep the standards of food and service high then I am all for it.

Lets face it who really would want to go on a Celebrity cruise if the food declined in quality. I do not think anybody here would want Royal Carribean's food on a Celebrity ship. And if it means to keep the standard up in food and service that cruise fares need to be adjusted then so be it.

Which brings me to the point of this thread. Why should people have to pay a surcharge to get food and service that once was in the MDR ? Even though a higher cruise price is the same as if someone paid extra to go to a specialty restaurant it just seems that the cruise line is nickle and diming you. I say raise the cruise price and lets get back to a high quality of food and service throughout the ship without having to pay a surcharge to a specialty restaurant.

I am not so sure if I agree with you're statement that the fee in the specialty restaurant is a tip for the personnel in the restaurant. I can't imagine the cruise line paying for a higher quality of food and service and not get compensated in return. I believe that a big portion goes to the cruise line and a small percentage goes to the personnal.
I don't believe for one minute that a cruise is going to let the staff keep between $60 and $80 PER COUPLE. In you're estimate then, if a waiter has 8 tables for the night at 2 per table then his take is going to be between $480 and $640 per night depending on the price of the restaurant. no cruise member makes that kind of money and if they did I would be the next one on line to apply for that job. I'm sure they will get the standard 15%-20% tops for each table they serve

I am not so sure if I agree with you're statement that the fee in the specialty restaurant is a tip for the personnel in the restaurant. I can't imagine the cruise line paying for a higher quality of food and service and not get compensated in return. I believe that a big portion goes to the cruise line and a small percentage goes to the personnal.
I don't believe for one minute that a cruise is going to let the staff keep between $60 and $80 PER COUPLE. In you're estimate then, if a waiter has 8 tables for the night at 2 per table then his take is going to be between $480 and $640 per night depending on the price of the restaurant. no cruise member makes that kind of money and if they did I would be the next one on line to apply for that job. I'm sure they will get the standard 15%-20% tops for each table they serve

I said basically, most of it is tip but some does go to the line to compensate for the better food, I just don't know what the percentages are. From employees and discussion with supervisors, the highest amount goes to the waiters. Remember that is their wage for the week so why would you not think the cruise line doesn't let them keep most of it.

I do believe that most go to the cruise line. The reason in that thinking is :

1) the Restaurant would be a losing proposition

2) lets say most goes to the waitstaff on average lets say a waiter in a specialty retaurant will serve approx 15-20 people per night thats only 7 - 10 couples...and lets say the fee is 30 -40 dollars that means on average a waiter and his busboy will take in on a 7 day cruise approx $4,100 - $5,600 which mean they are among the highest paid people out of most people in the United States. times those figures by the number of weeks in a year and it comes out to about $209,200 - $291,200...ABSURD. Dont believe what you hear. I am not sure if the Captain of the ship even makes $291,200 a year. That is basing a price of anywhere from 30 - 40 per person based on just 7 - 10 couples per night. The numbers speak for themselfs.

3) reason 3 is if the cruise line does not make any profit (I believe I already proved they do) then why not have this quality of food and service throughout the MDR. The reason they can't is because they would have to raise the price of the cruise, it's that simple.

We have eaten in the specialty restaurants on several occasions. I would never miss Palo on Disney. Both the food and service were exceptional for the price, which at the time was $10 p.p. Carnival, just a couple of months later, was $35 p.p., and both the food and service were disappointing. I would never pay for that again! Last February we too our first Holland America cruise. We ate at the Italian Restaurant (no charge, but you needed reservations) and the Steak House ($20 p.p). They were both exceptional, and I would rate them both a "must do".

This subject has been beaten to death not only in this string but for years and years on this and other cruise sites.

Bottom line: It is axiomatic that cruise lines strive to keep their base prices as low as possible in order to drive bookings and compete effectively. Airlines do the same thing, which is why you now pay to check bags, eat food, and rest your weary head on a pillow. If they throw those things in like they used to, they must necessarily raise fares, and if they do that two things will happen:

1) There will be endless strings on boards like this about how the airfares to get to cruises are usuriously high, some of them started by the moderators.

2) More importantly, the airline that raises its base fares will show up last on the list on all the search engines like Orbitz. They will lose business as a result.

Same thing with ships. People compare base fares, even if they aren't apples to apples. If a line wants to compete, they've got to hold the base fares down. Period.

Which means they've got to set up a bunch of serious profit centers for those who want to partake of them, and they do. You've just got to cope with that, and it's really easy to do: if you don't want to spend extra, just don't.

As far as specialty restaurants are concerned, on Celebrity we eat in all of them at least once, sometimes more. We leave on a TA in a few weeks and have already prebooked all of them once. We're really looking forward to trying Qsine. It looks like a lot of fun. Overall we're very much in the camp of 2katz3fsh.

The argument that the specialties should be included in the fare has another problem beyond just the concept of holding the base fare down. . .

Do the bloody math!

If you're on a 3,000-passenger ship and everyone has free access to the specialties, how's that going to work out in terms of accommodating everyone? Naturally, if they're "free" they'll become the most in-demand places on the ship, and like night follows day they won't have nearly enough room for everybody. And then the screaming will really start--both onboard and online! Cruising is now a mass-market commoditized business. If you make the specialties free, they will then become the equivalent of the MDR. By definition.

So the surcharge drives away those who do not consider it a value proposition and leaves the nicely-spaced, quiet tables, personal service, and at least marginally better food for those who value those things and are willing to pay for them. Lots of things on ships are not birthrights. Massages aren't free, drinks aren't free, Cokes aren't free, the casino isn't free, bingo isn't free, shore excursions aren't free, and specialty restaurants aren't free.

You just have to decide where you are on that continuum. If you feel you can't afford specialties or they don't represent value for money, just head for the MDR. Most people do, and I've never heard of anyone starving there.

__________________
The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. -- George Bernard Shaw

This subject has been beaten to death not only in this string but for years and years on this and other cruise sites.

Bottom line: It is axiomatic that cruise lines strive to keep their base prices as low as possible in order to drive bookings and compete effectively. Airlines do the same thing, which is why you now pay to check bags, eat food, and rest your weary head on a pillow. If they throw those things in like they used to, they must necessarily raise fares, and if they do that two things will happen:

1) There will be endless strings on boards like this about how the airfares to get to cruises are usuriously high, some of them started by the moderators.

2) More importantly, the airline that raises its base fares will show up last on the list on all the search engines like Orbitz. They will lose business as a result.

Same thing with ships. People compare base fares, even if they aren't apples to apples. If a line wants to compete, they've got to hold the base fares down. Period.

Which means they've got to set up a bunch of serious profit centers for those who want to partake of them, and they do. You've just got to cope with that, and it's really easy to do: if you don't want to spend extra, just don't.

As far as specialty restaurants are concerned, on Celebrity we eat in all of them at least once, sometimes more. We leave on a TA in a few weeks and have already prebooked all of them once. We're really looking forward to trying Qsine. It looks like a lot of fun. Overall we're very much in the camp of 2katz3fsh.

The argument that the specialties should be included in the fare has another problem beyond just the concept of holding the base fare down. . .

Do the bloody math!

If you're on a 3,000-passenger ship and everyone has free access to the specialties, how's that going to work out in terms of accommodating everyone? Naturally, if they're "free" they'll become the most in-demand places on the ship, and like night follows day they won't have nearly enough room for everybody. And then the screaming will really start--both onboard and online! Cruising is now a mass-market commoditized business. If you make the specialties free, they will then become the equivalent of the MDR. By definition.

So the surcharge drives away those who do not consider it a value proposition and leaves the nicely-spaced, quiet tables, personal service, and at least marginally better food for those who value those things and are willing to pay for them. Lots of things on ships are not birthrights. Massages aren't free, drinks aren't free, Cokes aren't free, the casino isn't free, bingo isn't free, shore excursions aren't free, and specialty restaurants aren't free.

You just have to decide where you are on that continuum. If you feel you can't afford specialties or they don't represent value for money, just head for the MDR. Most people do, and I've never heard of anyone starving there.

Missed my point on a few issues.
First I believe that the specialty restarants should be things of the past. Celebrity use to be know for some of the best quality of food at sea...Not anymore, many will tell you the food has declined. So to get the quality of food that use to be served in the main dinning room now cost you between $30.00 and $40.00 per person.

Its not a matter of being able to afford it or not nor is it about representing value or not....Its about what use to be standard on Celebrity.

I would rather them raise the cruise price by a few hundred dollars and give everyone a higher quality of food in the MDR.

I am not one of those people that choose a item because it is cheaper...In most cases the cheaper item will cost you more in the long run. Look at a prime example...

A Rio sedan costing 11,000 or a Toyota Corolla costing 17,000....I chose the Corolla because it will cost me less in the long run...I own two autos...A Toyota Tundra and that Corolla...I use the Corolla to commute to and from work and have 380,000 miles on it....It still runs great...That Rio I doubt would last half the time.

back to cruises...They now not only charge you to eat a quality food that use to be standard but they took away the midnight buffets (for some time now) just to save on cost.

Remember word of mouth travels fast..if a cruise line is skimping and is being cheap word will spread...Can Celebrity afford any bad mouthing ?

I have also heard that there is more and more of those annoying messages announcing art auctions and bingo games...something I loath...nothing makes a cruise feel cheap like listening to messages announcing art auctions...bingo games and the horse races.

My Wife and I have not been on a cruise for about 5 years we do however have a dozen or so under our belt and we always loved Celebrity. But like I said I have been getting feed back that the little things are being eliminated..remember when you first boarded a crew member wearing white gloves escorted you to your room...I hear now they give you a map or just point you in the direction...its the little things that make a cruise seem like they really care about you.

We were going to book a cruise on Summit but My wife suggested not too long ago that maybe we should give either Silver Sea or Crystal a shot...I am giving it a serious consideration.

Missed my point on a few issues.
First I believe that the specialty restarants should be things of the past. Celebrity use to be know for some of the best quality of food at sea...Not anymore, many will tell you the food has declined. So to get the quality of food that use to be served in the main dinning room now cost you between $30.00 and $40.00 per person.

Its not a matter of being able to afford it or not nor is it about representing value or not....Its about what used to be standard on Celebrity.

I would rather them raise the cruise price by a few hundred dollars and give everyone a higher quality of food in the MDR.

I am not one of those people that choose a item because it is cheaper...In most cases the cheaper item will cost you more in the long run. Look at a prime example...

A Rio sedan costing 11,000 or a Toyota Corolla costing 17,000....I chose the Corolla because it will cost me less in the long run...I own two autos...A Toyota Tundra and that Corolla...I use the Corolla to commute to and from work and have 380,000 miles on it....It still runs great...That Rio I doubt would last half the time.

back to cruises...They now not only charge you to eat a quality food that used to be standard but they took away the midnight buffets (for some time now) just to save on cost.

Remember word of mouth travels fast..if a cruise line is skimping and is being cheap word will spread...Can Celebrity afford any bad mouthing ?

I have also heard that there is more and more of those annoying messages announcing art auctions and bingo games...something I loath...nothing makes a cruise feel cheap like listening to messages announcing art auctions...bingo games and the horse races.

My Wife and I have not been on a cruise for about 5 years we do however have a dozen or so under our belt and we always loved Celebrity. But like I said I have been getting feed back that the little things are being eliminated..remember when you first boarded a crew member wearing white gloves escorted you to your room...I hear now they give you a map or just point you in the direction...its the little things that make a cruise seem like they really care about you.

We were going to book a cruise on Summit but My wife suggested not too long ago that maybe we should give either Silver Sea or Crystal a shot...I am giving it a serious consideration.

No maps when we boarded ,just champagne,why would anyone ever need a map?There were no announcements for Bingo or art auctions.

I have also heard that there is more and more of those annoying messages announcing art auctions and bingo games...something I loath...nothing makes a cruise feel cheap like listening to messages announcing art auctions...bingo games and the horse races.

My Wife and I have not been on a cruise for about 5 years we do however have a dozen or so under our belt and we always loved Celebrity. But like I said I have been getting feed back that the little things are being eliminated..remember when you first boarded a crew member wearing white gloves escorted you to your room...I hear now they give you a map or just point you in the direction...its the little things that make a cruise seem like they really care about you.

We were going to book a cruise on Summit but My wife suggested not too long ago that maybe we should give either Silver Sea or Crystal a shot...I am giving it a serious consideration.

Where exactly have you heard that there are more & more annoying messages? Not on Celebrity.

Regarding being escorted to your cabin; they also did not let any new passengers on the ship until 2PM, while now you can board before noon, even though the rooms aren't ready, so perhaps it's no longer parctical.

If you haven't been on a cruie in 5 years, how can you make assumptions on "what you hear". Why not step on a ship & find out for yourself?

We've never paid for a specialty restaurant and will not do so for the foreseeable future.

My first cruise was in 1991 on Carnival Ecstacy and perhaps the memory fades after all this time, but I do believe the food back then was better quality than it is now. That being said, my 21 yo palette was not as refined then as it is now. At 21 I had probably never eaten in a fine restaurant so perhaps I was more apt to be impressed?

My recent experience is with HAL, RCCL, Carnival and Disney. i would probably rate the food in the order of HAL, Carnival, Royal, Disney. I noticed the biggest drop in quality with respect to desserts. On Disney, I rarely ate more than a bite or two of any dessert. I really look forward to booking our next sailing with Celebrity as I have heard good things about food/service.

For now, we cruise with our young children, and as long as they are not welcome in a speciality restaurant, specialty dining is not an option for us.

Missed my point on a few issues.
First I believe that the specialty restarants should be things of the past. Celebrity use to be know for some of the best quality of food at sea...Not anymore, many will tell you the food has declined. So to get the quality of food that use to be served in the main dinning room now cost you between $30.00 and $40.00 per person.

Its not a matter of being able to afford it or not nor is it about representing value or not....Its about what use to be standard on Celebrity.

I would rather them raise the cruise price by a few hundred dollars and give everyone a higher quality of food in the MDR.

They now not only charge you to eat a quality food that use to be standard but they took away the midnight buffets (for some time now) just to save on cost.

Remember word of mouth travels fast..if a cruise line is skimping and is being cheap word will spread...Can Celebrity afford any bad mouthing ?

I have also heard that there is more and more of those annoying messages announcing art auctions and bingo games...something I loath...nothing makes a cruise feel cheap like listening to messages announcing art auctions...bingo games and the horse races.

My Wife and I have not been on a cruise for about 5 years we do however have a dozen or so under our belt and we always loved Celebrity. But like I said I have been getting feed back that the little things are being eliminated..remember when you first boarded a crew member wearing white gloves escorted you to your room...I hear now they give you a map or just point you in the direction...its the little things that make a cruise seem like they really care about you.

We were going to book a cruise on Summit but My wife suggested not too long ago that maybe we should give either Silver Sea or Crystal a shot...I am giving it a serious consideration.

I didn't miss your point at all, but you sure missed mine. . .

You're simply in the camp that says nothing should ever change. But things do change. Whether or not the overall quality of Celebrity's MDR food has declined is in the eye of the beholder. It's probably gone down a little, but no big deal. Some think it's gone down a lot, others think it's just fine. Based on a personal absence of five years, you choose to believe what you've "heard." Since you have, it will probably turn out to be a self-fulfilling prophesy, because you will expect it to have declined.

You say that specialties should be a thing of the past. I promise you that they're here to stay. You're gonna have to live with that, even if you don't eat at them.

You insist that the correct route for Celebrity would be to increase its base fares in order to improve the quality in the MDR. Celebrity disagrees, mostly for the reason I pointed out: they have to compete with other lines and they have to hold down base fares to do that. The result: cruising is still one of the biggest travel bargains in the world.

You'd be happy for them to raise the cruise fare by "a few hundred dollars" to support better MDR food. Well, think about it: for a few hundred dollars more, and depending on the length of the cruise, you could eat at a specialty restaurant most or all nights. That would effectively solve your problem and give you exactly the product you want for the price you are willing to pay. What the cruise lines are doing with the specialty restaurant idea is giving people a choice, which is what most people seem to want.

The elimination of midnight buffets by most lines obviously saves money, but it is also obvious that their research showed that these exercises in gluttony were not valued by the great majority of passengers. People (including me) generally overeat on ships anyway, and a lot of people (including me) saw these gorge-fests as way over-the-top. In fairness, to compensate many ships now have some sort of food available 24 hours.

The other solution is the one you mentioned: sail on a super-premium line. Great idea. You might want to add Oceania to the two possibilities you mentioned. Sounds like their product is more in line with your tastes. Just be aware that your own "experience-based" data is past the pull date, and the opinions of others may not match yours.

__________________
The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. -- George Bernard Shaw

Whether one believes the quality of food in the MDR has declined or not is somewhat irrelevant, I think.

There are several reasons the idea of alternate restaurants on ships has grown, and has become very widely accepted by passengers.

#1 -The ability to offer a larger variety of culinary choices, just as people are accustomed to on land.

It's important to note that on the lines offering the most alternative dining venues, not all cost extra to dine in; or in some cases the surcharge is minimal (like in the $5 range).

#2- No matter how good the quality of ingredients used for the food in the MDR, it can never served as well as it can in the smaller venues. In the smaller dining venues onboard the food is cooked as it's ordered, and that is simply not possible when serving 1000 or more people at a time in the MDR.

The "midnight buffets" produced a huge amount of waste. Budgeting for buffets and controlling loss costs is one of the most difficult tasks in the restaurant industry. The cruise lines also had a count of what percentage of passengers made use of the midnight buffets, and found those numbers dwindling, and no doubt also took into account the added stress hosting the buffet put on their manpower.

The "midnight buffet" has really not disappeared on most lines, but it has morphed into different things; like on deck bar-b-q s , more deck parties with themed buffets, and different specially themed buffets during the cruise, like chocolate and fruit buffets.

I am not an "old time" cruiser, our first cruise was in 2004, so I admittedly speak from ignorance of the glory days of when the food was better. I do have to wonder if this supposed decline in food quality has to do more with the ever increasing size of main line cruise ships than any other factor. It must be incredibly difficult to serve 1000 high quality meals at approximately the same time.

I don't know, I don't think the food quality has suffered due to the quantities of meals being prepared - caterers do it all the time. I think there have been some cut-back on the quality of ingredients.

But mostly (at least for me) I think its a recipe issue. The food just is not as tasty as it could be, which likely has very little to do with the method of preparation.

My guess is that all of todays varied diets have some part in this and they are trying cook low-sodium, low-fat, low-cholesterol, gluten-free etc.. ....somewhere along the way, the taste suffers. I think the challenge for the chefs to is to find a way to cook good food that appeals to the masses. I think this is what HAL has tried to achieive with their culinary council.

Where exactly have you heard that there are more & more annoying messages? Not on Celebrity.

Regarding being escorted to your cabin; they also did not let any new passengers on the ship until 2PM, while now you can board before noon, even though the rooms aren't ready, so perhaps it's no longer parctical.

If you haven't been on a cruie in 5 years, how can you make assumptions on "what you hear". Why not step on a ship & find out for yourself?

We were on the Celebrity last week .We boarded the ship at approximately 12:30 .While there are no longer midnight buffets there is something called the Captains specialty which is from 10PM to 1AM and is very similar .

In the main dining room, is there an option to "early" or "late" dining? For example, on Princess, instead of standing in line for the doors to open at 6:15 pm or 8:30 pm, our party of four or six or however many would simply come down around 7:15 (or other time of our choosing) and a table would quickly be found for us.

The advantages: (1) we were on our own timetable, and (2), even more important, we seemed to avoid some of the incredible hustle/rush of them serving about 1,000 people their appetizers, entrees, etc., at virtually the same time. Is this choice of seating time in the MDR available on the Silhouette?.

Sacto- Yes Celebrity offers standard fixed dining times (early & late seatings) and an any time option. We usually book late but did any time on our Celeb cruise and enjoyed it quite a bit. It may become our new normal.

You're simply in the camp that says nothing should ever change. But things do change. Whether or not the overall quality of Celebrity's MDR food has declined is in the eye of the beholder. It's probably gone down a little, but no big deal. Some think it's gone down a lot, others think it's just fine. Based on a personal absence of five years, you choose to believe what you've "heard." Since you have, it will probably turn out to be a self-fulfilling prophesy, because you will expect it to have declined.

You say that specialties should be a thing of the past. I promise you that they're here to stay. You're gonna have to live with that, even if you don't eat at them.

You insist that the correct route for Celebrity would be to increase its base fares in order to improve the quality in the MDR. Celebrity disagrees, mostly for the reason I pointed out: they have to compete with other lines and they have to hold down base fares to do that. The result: cruising is still one of the biggest travel bargains in the world.

You'd be happy for them to raise the cruise fare by "a few hundred dollars" to support better MDR food. Well, think about it: for a few hundred dollars more, and depending on the length of the cruise, you could eat at a specialty restaurant most or all nights. That would effectively solve your problem and give you exactly the product you want for the price you are willing to pay. What the cruise lines are doing with the specialty restaurant idea is giving people a choice, which is what most people seem to want.

The elimination of midnight buffets by most lines obviously saves money, but it is also obvious that their research showed that these exercises in gluttony were not valued by the great majority of passengers. People (including me) generally overeat on ships anyway, and a lot of people (including me) saw these gorge-fests as way over-the-top. In fairness, to compensate many ships now have some sort of food available 24 hours.

The other solution is the one you mentioned: sail on a super-premium line. Great idea. You might want to add Oceania to the two possibilities you mentioned. Sounds like their product is more in line with your tastes. Just be aware that your own "experience-based" data is past the pull date, and the opinions of others may not match yours.

I do agree with some of your points :
I Understand specialty restaurants are here to stay as it is a big money maker for the cruise line and at the same time they lowered the quality of the food in the MDR a win - win for the line.

Having been away from cruising for some time you have to at some point listen to cruise reviews from books and people otherwise you might be highly dissapointed. I get the fact that what is good to ssome isn't good to others but I try to average out all reviews and from what I hear the standard and quality of the food from years back has suffered. Just like Queen of Oakvillementioned the food declined due to the quality.

The reason why I would like to see the specialty restaurants leave is because I would like to arrange spa and dinning options prior to the cruise, I would of course find out when Captain's night is so I would not miss that meal in the MDR.. But my problem is what happens if I book a night in a restaurant only to find out prior to going to the restaurant there is a food item being served in the MDR that I would really want to try. I miss out on that item and then have to pay for a dinning option. Its sort of like buying a car...remember back when most car companies charged you extra for AC...now for most autos AC is included in the price. Is'nt that sort of the same, If car companies can raise the price of their autos to include AC why can't cruise lines do the same for higher quality food.

As for midnight buffets I do agree after reading your response, however I would at least like to see one Grand Gala Buffet.

I have viewed videos of SilverSea and Crystal cruises and I think the nod would go to Crystal, the only thing that might stop me would be the snobbish type of people...remember the movie "Titanic" I don't think I can deal with people who act like that for a week or two.

I own a car service company but having to deal with people who have to go to the smoking room after dinner and have a brandy and decided how to split up the world is something I would not look forward to nor would want to be a part of their world. Heck I'm a Becks beer guy but don't get me wrong Im not a slob either.

I do agree with some of your points :
I Understand specialty restaurants are here to stay as it is a big money maker for the cruise line and at the same time they lowered the quality of the food in the MDR a win - win for the line.

Having been away from cruising for some time you have to at some point listen to cruise reviews from books and people otherwise you might be highly dissapointed. I get the fact that what is good to ssome isn't good to others but I try to average out all reviews and from what I hear the standard and quality of the food from years back has suffered. Just like Queen of Oakvillementioned the food declined due to the quality.

The reason why I would like to see the specialty restaurants leave is because I would like to arrange spa and dinning options prior to the cruise, I would of course find out when Captain's night is so I would not miss that meal in the MDR.. But my problem is what happens if I book a night in a restaurant only to find out prior to going to the restaurant there is a food item being served in the MDR that I would really want to try. I miss out on that item and then have to pay for a dinning option. Its sort of like buying a car...remember back when most car companies charged you extra for AC...now for most autos AC is included in the price. Is'nt that sort of the same, If car companies can raise the price of their autos to include AC why can't cruise lines do the same for higher quality food.

As for midnight buffets I do agree after reading your response, however I would at least like to see one Grand Gala Buffet.

I have viewed videos of SilverSea and Crystal cruises and I think the nod would go to Crystal, the only thing that might stop me would be the snobbish type of people...remember the movie "Titanic" I don't think I can deal with people who act like that for a week or two.

I own a car service company but having to deal with people who have to go to the smoking room after dinner and have a brandy and decided how to split up the world is something I would not look forward to nor would want to be a part of their world. Heck I'm a Becks beer guy but don't get me wrong Im not a slob either.

So let's see, you've looked at videos of Silversea and Crystal and seen Titanic have decided based on that research that people on high-end lines are snobs.

Stereotyping is seldom useful. Stereotyping based on the movies is incredibly not useful.

If you would sail on these lines, I think you would find that, yes, most passengers are well-heeled. Otherwise how could they afford the fares? On the other hand I think you would find that most of them are decidedly not snobs. A great many have made their money, are comfortable in their skins, and just want to relax and enjoy themselves. They have no interest in checking your Dun & Bradstreet rating, or in having you check theirs. You would find that most do not obsessively preplan their days onboard, pretty much take things as they come, open their menus at night and find something there to enjoy. If they go to the bar for an after-dinner drink, you're much more likely to find them talking baseball than "splitting up the world."

They're not walking cliches, they're people just like everybody else.

__________________
The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. -- George Bernard Shaw

I do agree with some of your points :
I Understand specialty restaurants are here to stay as it is a big money maker for the cruise line and at the same time they lowered the quality of the food in the MDR a win - win for the line.

Having been away from cruising for some time you have to at some point listen to cruise reviews from books and people otherwise you might be highly dissapointed. I get the fact that what is good to ssome isn't good to others but I try to average out all reviews and from what I hear the standard and quality of the food from years back has suffered. Just like Queen of Oakvillementioned the food declined due to the quality.

The reason why I would like to see the specialty restaurants leave is because I would like to arrange spa and dinning options prior to the cruise, I would of course find out when Captain's night is so I would not miss that meal in the MDR.. But my problem is what happens if I book a night in a restaurant only to find out prior to going to the restaurant there is a food item being served in the MDR that I would really want to try. I miss out on that item and then have to pay for a dinning option. Its sort of like buying a car...remember back when most car companies charged you extra for AC...now for most autos AC is included in the price. Is'nt that sort of the same, If car companies can raise the price of their autos to include AC why can't cruise lines do the same for higher quality food.

As for midnight buffets I do agree after reading your response, however I would at least like to see one Grand Gala Buffet.

I have viewed videos of SilverSea and Crystal cruises and I think the nod would go to Crystal, the only thing that might stop me would be the snobbish type of people...remember the movie "Titanic" I don't think I can deal with people who act like that for a week or two.

I own a car service company but having to deal with people who have to go to the smoking room after dinner and have a brandy and decided how to split up the world is something I would not look forward to nor would want to be a part of their world. Heck I'm a Becks beer guy but don't get me wrong Im not a slob either.

Celebrity holds a gala Buffet on every cruise, very similiar to the old Grand Midnight Buffet. It is not held at midnight though.

I love Celebrity & if you have ever cruised on certain cruise lines you would know that they spend significantly more on their cuts of beef than some of those other cruise lines! Since the quality of the dinner choices have been for the most part wonderful (there are always the under or overcooked selections based on the chefs understanding of Medium rare, etc), I thought I would never bother spending the Extra money on a Specialty restaurant. On my last cruise - 19th w/ an "I will never"...attitude (Century, ending March 23, 2012) the rest of our dinner table (4 couples) decided to do the Specialty Restaurant, & so with incentive & curiosity, I joined in. OMG. It was WELL worth the price simply for the presentation; aside from the exquisite food. It was exactly that: SPECIAL. Really SPECIAL. Not something I would do routinely - but something I would now consider on any lengthy cruise & I definitely feel I am "special" enough to book it on my birthday, etc. I would also be surprised if anyone who tried it had a negative response - and I am absolutely 'cost concious'.

Last edited by ljjones; April 7th, 2012 at 02:53 PM.
Reason: Grammatical correction.

So let's see, you've looked at videos of Silversea and Crystal and seen Titanic have decided based on that research that people on high-end lines are snobs.

Stereotyping is seldom useful. Stereotyping based on the movies is incredibly not useful.

If you would sail on these lines, I think you would find that, yes, most passengers are well-heeled. Otherwise how could they afford the fares? On the other hand I think you would find that most of them are decidedly not snobs. A great many have made their money, are comfortable in their skins, and just want to relax and enjoy themselves. They have no interest in checking your Dun & Bradstreet rating, or in having you check theirs. You would find that most do not obsessively preplan their days onboard, pretty much take things as they come, open their menus at night and find something there to enjoy. If they go to the bar for an after-dinner drink, you're much more likely to find them talking baseball than "splitting up the world."

They're not walking cliches, they're people just like everybody else.

Here is where my experiance tells me differently then what you have quoted.

I have dealt with many high earners, people who make 7 figures, not saying that all people who cruise Crystal are 7 figure earners but the majority of people who cruise Crystal are as you stated high earners or people who were born into it.

I pull no punches, Let me give you a line from a movie titled "Wall Street" Now mind you I am in no way being racist, I am just making a point, sometimes people act to politically correct to come off as being level minded and wanting to be like by all. AGAIN I am not being a racist but just trying to prove a point...

During a party over Gordon Gecco's house there was some idle chit chat among the guests and as the scene was about to go the a room to discuss stocks we hear two people talking about prison and the people who are in prison. here is the line :

Guest 1 - I find it hard to believe that 70% of the people in prison are minority.

Guest 2 - What so hard to believe they commit 70% of the crime...how true is that statement..well walk through any prison system and a majority of peole locked up are minorities. That is a fact.

Back to my point the majority of people I have dealt with who are big time earners are in fact people who consider themselfs better then the average person, they feel entitled, and more then you think look down upon lower wage earners....That is a fact, I have dealt with them and trust me its not fun...The big money earners are not as classy as the top earners were back on Titanic...the big money earners of today are much ruder in general and much more cut throat...They have to be, thats how they got there in the first place, while they are on vacation all people lower then them are seen as servants, now if you want to believe this or not or you want to stay "Politically correct is up to you. I tell it like it is and from the people I have dealt with are exactly like i have mentioned.

Dealing with those people is not enjoyable, that includes eating with them and having any type of conversation with them. Trust me on this most of the time conversation during dinner will include the company they are in charge of...how many people they employ, the stock market, gold, the hours they work, the jets they fly on...If anybody here states they would'nt mind cruising with people of that nature or just eating a dinner with them then I know that person is full of it.

All abover examples are not ment to be hurtful, but I know of no other way to explain how I know of this.